* Remember the old “I was put on this Earth to fix pensions” days? Whacky fun, right?

Before the state pension bill passed, Gov. Quinn frequently deferred to comment on other issues because it wouldn’t be right to address anything but pension reform. Of course now that there is (at least momentarily) a pension bill in the books, the Governor can’t use that as cover anymore. And sure enough, gaming expansion proponents are back at it. A hearing was held yesterday to discuss the latest amendments to the proposal…

The newest version separates plans for a Chicago casino with up to 10,000 betting positions from a broader package that would add a total of five new casinos across the state and allow slot machines at horse tracks. The shift in strategy is aimed at blunting arguments that the gambling market outside the city is already saturated with existing casinos and video gambling machines at neighborhood bars.

However, peeling a Chicago casino out of a larger gambling package presents its own problems as Downstate and suburban lawmakers may be less inclined to vote in favor unless they get a piece of the gambling pie. But sponsoring Rep. Bob Rita, D-Blue Island, said a new provision that would split revenue from a Chicago casino evenly between the city and state should help win support of legislators and the governor, who has vetoed two previous expansion bills.

Crain’s Chicago noted that Governor Pat Quinn might be more amenable to this plan than he has been to previous proposals that involved building casinos throughout the state. However, as both Crain’s and the AP described, putting a single, large casino in Chicago will almost certainly face long odds in the General Assembly; downstate representatives have already objected on the grounds that the primary purpose of a casino bill ought to be revitalizing economies around the state with construction and permanent jobs.

In fact, and as you will recall from last week in one of Rich’s posts, the Governor has lightened up on a Chicago casino. But get this…

video poker parlors are saturating the market and watering down the argument for new brink and mortor casinos and slots at tracks. The new gaming bill should address this issue. Perhaps prohibit parlors that operate for the sole purpose of having games that target women.

Rita’s running in the right lane now with the notion of revenue sharing from a larger, more profitable casino in Chicago. This tired old theory of casinos helping revitalize communities has been proven wrong. There are some jobs created, but the areas around these “destination casinos” are not improving.
It’s going to take Chicago and Suburban legislators to muscle this one through. Give the racetrack it’s positions, heck, nearly everyone there is already gambling anyway.
We don’t need 6 more casinos just to justify the one that could truly raise revenue from tourists, conventioneers and out of the area folks. I can’t for the life of me figure out why legislators want a State Regulated Gambling facility in districts that are not real tourist areas or large convention areas.

Go to Joliet.
Go to Harrah’s.
Spend a weekend there.
Walk around downtown Joliet.
Then drive around it.

After you’ve done that, you will better realize just how poorly legalized gambling revitalizes a local economy.

It just flat-out doesn’t.

So don’t get your hopes up on a Chicago casino creating anything greater than what we currently see in Montreal. It will satisfy politicians because they end up with more loot to play with and satisfy casino owners as they expand their business - but for the rest of us, legalized gambling is like a face lift on a 90 year old actress - it only looks OK from miles away.

VM - though I’m no fan of legalized gambling and think there’s only so many times the state can go to the gambling well before it runs dry, I’m tired of seeing vans filled with tourists heading from downtown Chicago to Indiana. One day though the feds are going to legalize internet gaming and then these casino revenues are going to plummet.

States that have slots and/or other forms of gambling at their racetracks: Minnesota, Iowa, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, New York, Maine, Delaware, Florida, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and New Mexico. Can Illinois please join the party?

By the way, the Illinois Derby is this Saturday. The 4-5 morning line favorite is Midnight Hawk, who is part owned by Blackhawks head coach Joel Quenneville. Go Midnight Hawk and Coach Q!

We always hear about Illinois ain’t Indiana or Wisconsin. True enough. Chicago ain’t Vegas. It’s not even Atlantic City or Biloxi for that matter. Just about anywhere but Vegas, legalized gambling is nothing but diminishing returns. It only works there because it’s all they do. They keep blowing up old casinos and building new ones to keep it fresh for a limited crowd that needs a whole damn country (and int’l visitors) to keep it viable. No other city will go “all in” like Vegas. VM hit the nail on the head. Casinos don’t revitalize anything. At best they’re an entertainment option that are more costly than a local Multiplex theatre.

Slots everywhere except Fairmount Park, absolutely ridiculous. If this bill passes, that will be the final nail in the coffin. Now Arlington just needs to force out Hawthorne to monopolize the industry.

In my view, it’s real simple. The pols want the “new” casino money in a pile they can spend on vote getting stuff; they don’t want to have to use the new revenue to pay the pension debt. So until they have (temporarily) “fixed” the pensions, they don’t want any new money to appear on the table (pun intended).